It is already starting in Detroit. According to www.mlive.com, "Physician's offices will be able to more quickly access patient insurance information from HMOs and other health plans in the state under a new electronic service being rolled out by Covisint.
The new program will allow physicians to log into one computer network and access a variety of information, such as checking patient insurance coverage and claim status. Transmission of electronic medical records is taking on a new urgency because of the nearly$21 billion in proposed spending to promote it in the federal stimulus package."
This is just the beginning of changes in healthcare. EMRs will become more important as time goes by. Look at MS HealthVault and the other programs that are being launched to enable patients to assemble and store their records electronically. This should save patients and doctors a lot of time.